This is a list of questions/answers that users commonly have when
trying to set up or run their PPP connections.
If you received a printed version of this document, please be aware that
there might be a newer version on the World Wide Web.

For the latest version, launch Netscape and type in the URL:
"http://www.yale.edu/iic/trouble/win31-ppp-faq.html",
or type "www
http://www.yale.edu/iic/trouble/win31-ppp-faq.html"
at the Pantheon prompt.

Introduction

If you're having trouble connecting with PPP, try running the TCPMan
(Trumpet Winsock) program by itself. This program is located in your Internet
Tools program group. TCPMan is the program that takes care of dialing the
phone number and establishing the PPP connection; the other network programs
(Netscape, Telnet, Eudora, etc.) use the connection that was established
by TCPMan.

Questions and Answers

Q1: How do I start TCPMan (Trumpet Winsock)?
A1: TCPMan should start automatically when you run network software.
For trouble-shooting purposes, however, it is useful to run TCPMan by itself.
Find the TCPMan icon in your Internet Tools program group and double-click
on it.

Q2: How do I get to the Trumpet Winsock window?
A2: After TCPMan has been started, press Ctrl-Esc (the
Ctrl and Esc keys at the same time) and select TCPMan
in the Task List window. This should bring up a window labelled
Trumpet Winsock in which you will see the commands that TCPMan sends
to your modem and the modem's responses. If you are having trouble connecting,
this is the place you want to start looking.

Q3: I get an "Unable to Load TCP"
error.
A3: This error message usually occurs if you have the wrong
Com port selected in the Trumpet Winsock Setup. To fix this, select Setup
from Trumpet Winsock's File menu and try entering a different number
(possibilities are 1, 2, 3, or 4) in the SLIP Port box. Close the
setup window and restart TCPMan; if the error message doesn't appear you've
got the right Com port, otherwise try a different number.

Q4: I get a "Modem is not responding"
error.
A4: There are several possible causes for this error message.
Make sure your modem is plugged in and turned on, and that the cable is
securely connected on both ends. If you still get the error message, take
a look in the Trumpet Winsock window. You may well see the word "ERROR"
immediately following "at&c1&k3". If you do, you'll need
to change the modem initialization string (see Question 6 below). If you
don't see any error messages in the TCPMan window, and you are sure your
modem is turned on and connected properly, you should contact the Internet
Information Center for more help.

Q5: How do I change the baud rate?
A5: In the Trumpet Winsock window, select Setup
from the File menu. The baud rate is the value in the box labelled
Baud Rate -- change the number to reflect the speed of your modem.
Note, however, that since this number represents the speed at which your
computer sends information to the Com port, if your modem supports data
compression (which most do) you should set this value a little higher than
the speed of your modem: 38400 for a 28,800 bps modem, 19200 for 14,400
bps.

Q6: How do I change the modem initialization
string?
A6: In the Trumpet Winsock window, select Edit Scripts
from the Dialer menu, then open the "login.cmd" file.
Once this file has opened, scroll down until you see something that looks
like $modemsetup = "&c1&k3". If you know the
correct initialization string your modem should be using for a PPP connection
(consult your modem manual for this) you should replace "&c1&k3"
with the correct string (note: if the string in your manual begins with
the letters AT, leave them off here). If you cannot find the proper initialization
string, you can try using "&f", "&f1" (or "f2"
or "f3"), or even nothing (i.e. $modemsetup = ""),
though none of these is guaranteed to work.

Q7: How do I get TCPMan to dial?
A7: TCPMan usually dials automatically when it starts. If you
want to dial manually, select Login from the Dialer menu
in the Trumpet Winsock window.

Q8: What is the phone number for PPP?
A8: The student phone number is 764-9664, the faculty/staff
phone number is 764-9632, and the Law School phone number is 764-5686.
You will only be able to use the number for which you are authorized, so
make sure you have the right number. Note that if you are dialing from
an on-campus phone, you should dial only the last five digits of the number
(e.g. 4-9664).

Q9: How do I change the phone number?
A9: In the Trumpet Winsock window, select setup.cmd
from the Dialer menu. A small window will appear -- edit the phone
number and click on OK.

Q10: How do I turn off call waiting?
A10: If you are using an SNET phone line, you can turn off call
waiting by inserting "*70," (that's star seventy comma) before
the phone number (see Question 8 above). If you're using a Yale Telecom
line, you cannot turn off call waiting, though if you have voice mail you
can use the "Call forward, busy" option to send all calls to
voicemail when you are using the line. This is too complicated to program
into TCPMan, so it is easiest to dial "*4 68000" before you use
your modem and leave it set that way.

Q11: Where are my NetID and password stored?
A11: In the Trumpet Winsock window, select PPP Options
from the File menu. A small window containing your NetID and (unreadable)
password will appear -- if you need to change or double-check the username
or password, just enter them here (note: use only lowercase letters) and
click OK. Use Password Authentication Protocol should be
checked.

Q12: I get the error "Rejected: unable
to authenticate, bad password."
A12: This error message, which typically appears at the bottom
of the Trumpet Winsock window, occurs when the NetID and password
you are using do not match a NetID/password pair in the database of NetIDs
and passwords associated with the phone number you dialed. There are a
number of reasons why this might happen. First of all, you may not have
been entered into the database yet -- usually this takes about 72 hours.
If it has been more than 72 hours since you submitted your PPP application,
make sure you entered your username and password all in lowercase (see
Question 11) and make sure you are dialing the correct phone number (see
Question 8). If everything seems to be in order, there may have been a
delay in processing your application. You should contact the User Accounts
Office (432-6627) to see if your account is active yet.

Q13: What does the "Comm Error [OVERRUN]"
message mean?
A13: Overruns happen when your computer is sending information
to your Com port too quickly for it to handle, or when the machine is too
busy doing other things and Windows' multitasking fails to allow enough
CPU time for TCPMan. Setting your baud rate to a lower value may make the
errors go away, but keeping the baud rate high may result in better overall
performance.

Q14: What do the "Comm error [FRAME]",
"Comm error [BREAK]" messages mean?
A14: This may be an indication that your baud rate is set too
high for your modem to handle. The error messages may also indicate that
you are using the original Windows comm driver (comm.drv) which sometimes
works imperfectly. You can try installing a newer comm driver or contact
the Internet Information Center for help.

Q15: How do I know when TCPMan has connected
properly?
A15: The holy grail of TCPMan's existence is the IP Address.
Once the modem has dialed and connected, if there are no error messages
in the Trumpet Winsock window, and the golden phrase "Your
IP Address is:" followed by a many-digit number appears in the Trumpet
Winsock window, TCPMan has accomplished its task and you may go on
(leaving TCPMan running) and use your other network applications.

Q16: What settings should I use in the Setup
screen?
A16: Aside from the baud rate and SLIP port you should not change
the settings on the Setup screen. For reference, here are the default settings:

Q17: Netscape gives the following error message: "Netscape
is unable to locate the server XXX, server does not have a DNS entry."
A17: This error message has many possible causes, most of which
have nothing to do with DNS entries (DNS stands for Domain Name Server,
which is a machine that translates addresses into IP numbers). It occurs
when Trumpet Winsock did not connect successfully, so you should check
the Trumpet Winsock window for errors or a missing IP address. If
you have been using Netscape successfully and this message suddenly appears,
it may be that there is a problem with the nameserver machine; try again
in a while and the problem should disappear. If you have changed the nameserver
settings in the Trumpet Winsock Setup window, that may also cause
this error. If everything is configured correctly, and Trumpet Winsock
seems to be connecting properly, contact the Internet Information Center
for more help.

Q18:
I have a US Robotics 56k modem, and it seems to connect fine with PPP, but
when I try to run any of my network software, the connection chokes
and nothing works.
A18: This is the now-infamous "Pause Bug." For some reason,
when the modem connects to a PPP line it goes into pause mode and stops
sending out information.
To fix things, you have to get your PPP software to send the following
initialization string to the modem before it dials:

&F1&K0&I0S33=32S15=128S27=64S32=34 (note: the characters after K and
I are zeroes, not Os)

See Question 6 for instructions on how to change the modem
initialization string.

Q19: TCPMan caused a General Protection
Fault.
A19: If all phone lines are busy, TCPMan will not be able to
establish a connection. It will wait for thirty seconds and try again,
repeating the process until successful. If you interrupt the process by
pressing the Cancel button in the TCPMan Dialing window,
TCPMan may give this error. Close TCPMan by selecting Close. Restart
Windows and try running TCPMan again.

Q20: After a while, my modem hangs up.
A19: TCPMan is set to "idle timeout" after 60 seconds.
Idle time is defined as time when no application that uses Winsock is active.
So if there are open Winsock applications that are themselves idle, Trumpet
Winsock would not interpret that as idle time. This is a policy decision
on the part of Academic Computing Services.

If your question is not addressed on any of these pages and you continue
to experience problems, then please contact the Internet Information Center
at iic@yale.edu or at 432-5116. You are also welcome to stop by between
8:30 am and 5:00 pm, Mondays to Fridays -- we're located in the Computer
Center at 175 Whitney Ave. The friendly IIC consultants can also help with
client packages, or any other aspects of connecting to the Internet.